10.24.2011

FARMVILLE, Va. – Longwood University played two women's soccer matches this past weekend.  The Lancers (6-7-4) earned a 1-1 double-overtime tie against visiting Eastern Kentucky University of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) on October 21 at the Athletics Complex in Farmville, before a 3-2 double-OT road loss at Morehead State University of the OVC on Oct. 23.  Longwood has just one match remaining this season, on the road at fellow Independent Francis Marion University on Sunday, Oct. 30, in Florence, South Carolina at 3 p.m.

Recapping OVC Opponents EKU & MSU
Longwood and EKU battled evenly on the scoreboard for 110 minutes.  Senior captain Kacie Oliver|Portsmouth, R.I. (Portsmouth) scored the goal for the Lancers in the 51st minute, assisted by sophomore Kelsey Pardue|Henrico (Hermitage), while the Colonels scored the tying goal in the 86th minute to force the extra periods.  Junior keeper Kyra Byron|Richmond (Mills E. Godwin) played the duration for the Lancers, tying her season-high with eight saves, including three key stops in the first OT, and there was a crucial team save at the end of regulation as well.

Longwood and MSU also fought into double-OT before the Eagles scored the decisive goal in the 104th minute.  Junior captain Lindsey Ottavio|Fairfax (W.T. Woodson) and freshman Kelsey McDonald|Kennett Square, Pa. (Unionville) each scored goals for the Lancers, while Pardue and freshman Rebecca Soares|Virginia Beach (Kempsville) each provided assists on the respective goals.  LU answered from deficits of 1-0, and 2-1 with the respective goals from Ottavio in the third minute, and McDonald in the 85th minute to force the additional periods.  Sophomore keeper Shelby Hall|Purcellville (Loudoun Valley) played the duration for the Lancers with a career-high eight saves, including two essential stops in the first OT.

A Quick Look At Francis Marion
Francis Marion is coached by third-year head coach Joel Person, and is currently 4-11-1 following a 3-2 road loss at South Carolina State on Oct. 20 with a match scheduled at Clemson University on Oct. 27.  Sophomore Yasmin Bunter has led the Patriots with four goals and four assists, while senior keeper Lauren Vetock has played all 1460:00 in goal for FMU, yielding 32 goals (1.97) with 88 saves (.733) and one shutout.  Longwood and Francis Marion are meeting for the ninth time since 1999 as the Patriots lead the all-time series at 6-2.  The Lancers have never won at FMU in four previous visits.

Head Coach Todd Dyer
“This past weekend was a perfect reflection of our entire season.  We played two very tough opponents, gave everything we had physically, went into overtime and left the field feeling like maybe we deserved better.  But that's soccer, and we've experienced the beauty and harsh reality of our sport throughout this fall season. Fourteen of our 17 games have been decided by one goal or less, and eight of those contests have gone into overtime.  On one hand, that's encouraging because we know we're competitive in every single game that we play.  On the other, it's frustrating because we're so close in the end but still coming up short on the scoreboard.  There's tons of character on this team, and the season we've had has allowed our student-athletes to prove that on a consistent basis.  We still have one to play, and I'm confident this team will lift itself once again and do everything within our power to end the season on a positive note.”

Leading The Lancers | Season Statistics
Kelsey Pardue continues to lead Longwood in scoring with her six goals and six assists totaling 18 points through 17 matches.  She is followed by Kacie Oliver (6g, 12p), junior Nikki Glisson|Mechanicsville (Hanover) (3g, 3a, 9p), Lindsey Ottavio (2g, 2a, 6p) and Kelsey McDonald (2g, 2a, 6p), fifth-year senior Alex Myers|Stafford (Colonial Forge) (1g, 2p), and senior Mackenzie King|Stafford (North Stafford) (1a, 1p).  Kyra Byron has played 1338:58 in front of the net while allowing 14 goals (0.94) with 55 saves (.797) and the five shutouts, while Shelby Hall has played 321:43 in goal while yielding seven goals (1.96) with 13 saves (.650).

A Win Needed To Finish At Least .500 Again
Longwood needs to win on the road at Francis Marion to finish at least .500 for the sixth-straight season.  The last time the Lancers finished below .500 was 2005 when they were 7-9-1. The program has only had three non-winning seasons in the sport's 18-year history.  Longwood has played every opponent extremely close this fall with the exception of the recent contest against North Carolina State Oct. 7 of the Atlantic Coast Conference.  Six of the seven losses this season have been by just one goal, including three in double-overtime.

Oh No, Not Again …
Longwood has now played a program-record eight overtime contests this year, totaling 15 extra periods.  Unfortunately, the OT matches have not been kind to the Lancers who have only won one of the beyond-regulation matches (Tennessee Tech).  Longwood has tied four (Richmond, Liberty, George Mason, Eastern Kentucky), and lost three (East Tennessee State, Appalachian State, Morehead State) of the OT contests.  Longwood has played 1,660-plus minutes for an average of 97-plus minutes per match – equivalent to a full additional match-plus.  Ironically, the Lancers did not play one overtime match during all of last season (19 matches).  The previous record for OT matches was six played during 2008.

A Special Group Of Seniors
Longwood recognized its eight seniors on the roster during a pre-game ceremony prior to the match against Eastern Kentucky Oct. 21.  Those Lancers making their final home appearances included Katie Devlin|Fairfax (W.T. Woodson), Alex Myers, Alecia McConnell|Carlisle, Pa. (Carlisle), Kristen McGough|Florence, Ala. (Stony Point, Texas), Kacie Oliver, Dylan Spicker|Sherman Oaks, Calif. (Hickory, Va.), Mackenzie King, and Soraya Serra|Round Hill (Loudoun Valley).  During the last five years that members of this class have been a part of the program, Longwood has attained a winning record of 46-39-8 (.538).

No Place Like Home
Longwood is 40-14-2 (.732) on its home turf at the Athletics Complex since beginning competition at the facility in 2006, though finishing an uncharacteristic 5-4-1 at home this season.  The Lancers finished 8-2 at home last year, and are 33-13-1 (.713) at the Athletics Complex since attaining its NCAA Division I certification and eligibility for 2007.

Season & Career-Ending Injury
Unfortunately, fifth-year senior defender and second-year team captain Katie Devlin suffered a season-ending (right) knee injury at George Mason Sept. 11.  This is the second time during her career that such an injury has happened to her.  Devlin injured her other (left) knee early during her sophomore (2008) campaign and missed the remainder of that year before receiving a medical hardship waiver that allowed this fifth year with the program.

2011 Captains
Katie Devlin is serving as a team captain for the second consecutive season, while senior defender/midfielder Kacie Oliver and junior forward Lindsey Ottavio are in the team leadership roles for the first time.

The Coaching Staff
Eighteenth-year head coach Todd Dyer '93 leads Longwood and is assisted by associate head coach Steve Brdarski, in his eighth season, along with director of soccer operations Lindsey Williams and graduate assistant Marcia Biddle '10.  Dyer is the only coach in the program's history as he has attained an overall coaching record of 192-119-20 (.610) over 17-plus years, including 14 winning seasons.

Up Next
The off-season awaits as Longwood will have played its final match of the season at Francis Marion Oct. 30.